English Dub Review: Sparks Of Tomorrow “The Electricity Boy”

Overview:

Sparks of Tomorrow recently dropped its first episode, “The Electricity Boy.” In the story, viewers get to see a world of steampunk get ready for electricity, leaving one to wonder if it will have the success story it does in our world.

Our Take:

With the first episode, things start off as the viewers enter an alternate Meiji-era Kyoto, where a steampunk aesthetic has taken the place of electricity. Things open up on Inako Momokawa, whose family owns a sake brewery. She feels like she can’t do anything right, especially in her father’s eyes and is often scolded for it. She finds solace in prayers at the Fushimi Inari shrine.

While there, Inako encounters the free-spirited Kihachi Sakamoto, who believes that electricity might just get the last laugh after all. Of course, as to be expected in a story like this, most people write him off. Soon, his backstory unfolds, revealing that he once tried to make his ambitions a reality alongside his brother, who hasn’t returned from the war.

Soon, it is announced that Inako has been arranged to marry the heir of a wealthy family, Yousuke Mizoe. Now, this isn’t My Happy Marriage, as Kihachi convinces her to run away. Together, they strike a deal: find Kihachi’s old notes, and the engagement will be called off in exchange.

Over the past few years, anime fans have been treated to a number of these coming-of-age stories that start off when a boy meets a girl. Sometimes, they meet by chance. Other times, other forces are at play. Either way, things are about to spark, and not necessarily the electrical kind. With the start, there are many things that viewers want to see play out: Inako’s ambitions, Kihachi’s backstory and family, and whatever Mizoe has cooked up, especially concenring that Electrical Catalouge. Of course, who doesn’t appreciate a steampunk story, especially when they bring electricity into the mix.